A Key to Climate Chaos?

The planet's carbon-rich forests and peatlands of the Amazon, Canada, the Congo, Russia, SE Asia and the USA, appear to hold a key to avoiding climate catastrophe. These areas contain almost 140 bn tonnes of what is termed 'irrecoverable' carbon, as they could not be replaced by 2050. 2050 is the guestimated latest that net carbon emissions would have to entirely cease to avoid irreversible climate chaos (https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/nov/18/revealed-the-places-humanity-must-not-destroy-to-avoid-climate-chaos). A mapping study has established that this irrecoverable carbon is highly concentrated. Fifty percent of it can be found in only 3.3% of the world's land surface. These crucial carbon stores are, however, currently being destroyed by combinations of farming, logging and wildfires. In the last decade, for example, 4bn tonnes of irrecoverable carbon has been lost. Only half of the 140 bn tonne carbon store is in a currently protected area. Protecting an additional 5.5% of land, would increase the conserved store to 75% of the total. This seems a relatively modest increase (it's not really!) but many of these areas are extremely difficult to monitor and regulate. Local politics often has important effects on all established and new 'protected' areas.